Naming and Shaming Therapists

The practice of naming and shaming those who get the delicate balance of good work vs making errors seemingly wrong is causing therapists distress. The public process of naming and shaming therapist’s risks driving an open and honest debate underground. This means the very ethical frameworks or codes of ethics meant to protect the public or therapists from needing to complain, could themselves have an unintended and harmful impact. Yet, the topic seems rarely discussed in trainings or openly amongst therapists. Here, we will create a safe space to explore what the public, therapists and complaint trends seem to be telling us.

In this highly experiential workshop, we will each become one of the stakeholders involved in a complaint, and experience how we interact in ways that might not be useful. This will show how serving different and sometimes contradictory needs within the system and how mapping this out, can lead to working in a way that is less adversarial and more humane. Through us, the relationships, types of transference and tensions will emerge to offer a multi-sensory experience.

We will also discuss what to do if you receive a complaint and how the Psychotherapy & Counselling Union, whose motto is 'Standing up for Therapists', could support you.

Dr Philip Cox (PsychD) is an HCPC registered Chartered Psychologist and BACP (Accred) member with over 20 years of clinical experience. Philip is Chair-elect of the BPS Psychotherapy Section and a Psychotherapy & Counselling Union executive committee member, leading on professional complaints